FNPS Plant Database

Piptochaetium avenaceum

blackseed needlegrass, eastern needlegrass, black oatgrass, blackseed speargrass

Nomenclature

Common Name:

blackseed needlegrass, eastern needlegrass, black oatgrass, blackseed speargrass

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Piptochaetium avenaceum

Family:

Poaceae (Graminae)

Plant Specifics

Form:

Grass

Size:

To 2 ft, with blooms up to 4 ft

Life Span:

long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

black

Phenology:

Blooms April-June

Noted For:

Interesting foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Small bunchgrass for wildflower gardens.

Considerations:

Seeds have a hooked end that can catch in clothes or animal fur.

Availability:

Seed, Native Nurseries, Friends

Propagation:

Seed.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Not wet but not extremely dry -to- Very long very dry periods

Salt Water Flooding

Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam

Soil pH:

slightly acidic to neutral

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Native Habitats:

Upland woodlands and forests, including hardwood hammocks, thickets, and fencerows.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Attractive, very dark green, fine leaf blades. The related Florida needlegrass, P. avenacioides, is endemic to the central and southern peninsula of Florida.
FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

"

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. (2025). Plant Database: Scientific name (Common name). ( https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=PIAV ). Accessed 2026. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.


Taylor, Walter K. (2009). A Guide to Florida Grasses. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.


Weakley, A.S., and Southeastern Flora Team. (2025). Flora of the southeastern United States Web App. ( https://fsus.ncbg.unc.edu/ ). University of North Carolina Herbarium, North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, NC.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL.

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